Eloping with the Princess (Brotherhood of the Sword #3)(14)

“In a moment. For now, she’ll be safe with them,” Potterfield said. He motioned to the men standing. “Move, this new information has put our queen in immediate danger.”

Jason came to his feet. He didn’t want to stay and listen to Potterfield, he wanted to go and see to Isabel himself. Get her out of there and know she was protected, but he also knew that Potterfield would not have asked him to stay unless the information he had was crucial. “What is going on?” Jason asked.

Potterfield waited until the other men had left the room. “I think I know what all of this is about.” He paced the length of the room before settling into one of the chairs.

“All? Meaning what?” Jason asked.

“The assassination attempt. The lost princess. Everything being connected to Thornton. You mentioned this Isabel is Thornton’s niece?” Potterfield made a sweeping gesture with his hand.

“That is what she has always been told, and he paid for her schooling,” Lynford said. “Up until recently when an anonymous benefactor took over the payments.”

“They had hidden her here all along,” Potterfield said. He swiped his hand down his face. “When everyone assumed she’d been murdered with the rest of the royal family.”

“The heir to the Saldanian throne has claim to England’s throne as well?” Lynford asked.

Potterfield nodded.

“Yes, but Victoria has already been coronated. Would these fools expect her to abdicate the throne to hand it over to Isabel?” Jason asked. “That is, provided that their assassination attempts fail?”

Potterfield shook his head. “Several months ago, there was some correspondence intercepted between King Ernest Augustus of Hanover and some of his supporters, those who think he should be the rightful heir to the throne of England.”

“Ridiculous,” Lynford said.

“Indeed,” Potterfield said. “But dangerous thinking nonetheless.”

“Is the king himself involved in such thinking?” Lynford asked.

“No, but I doubt he would deny the throne if someone rightfully offered it to him,” Potterfield said.

“What do they hope to accomplish with Isabel?” Jason asked.

“It is true that she herself has a legitimate claim to the throne,” Potterfield said. “But were she married off to Ernest Augustus’s son, it could create a strong union.”

“I believe Somersby said that Victoria herself had already refused interest in marrying George,” Lynford said.

Potterfield thrummed his fingers on the back of his chair. “They are frustrated because even though Victoria is young, they are unable to control her.”

“These people already had their hands on Isabel once,” Jason said.

Potterfield’s brows rose.

“They took her from my townhome, but I was able to track them quickly and save her.”

“It would seem that you had the foresight to know the girl needed protection. Well done,” Potterfield said.

Jason nodded. “It was Lynford, sir, he explained that Isabel needed protection.” He couldn’t take credit for something he hadn’t done himself.

“Indeed. It seems forcing a union between Isabel and George would almost guarantee another threat on Victoria’s life,” Lynford said.

“I won’t make the same mistake again.” Jason came to his feet. “I’ll keep the princess protected. They will not find Isabel. The rest of you can keep Victoria safe.”

“Where will you go?” Potterfield asked.

He had no notion of where he’d go, but he’d think of something. “I’ll send word when we get there,” Jason said.

Potterfield nodded. “I need only know you are safe. You are the best tracker and rider the Brotherhood has. I know you’ll do what is necessary to make certain you aren’t followed, but I would be remiss not to remind you of the stakes.”

“Find the bastards who are planning this so I can eventually return home,” Jason said.

A princess.

He doubled his speed returning to the tunnels hidden beneath the streets of London. What the devil was he supposed to do now? It was his duty to protect her. Hell, he was supposed to protect England’s royal family, and now he had another princess on his hands, and one who didn’t even know she was a princess. Things had gone from bad to worse in a matter of minutes. And on top of that he’d stashed her in the tunnels, an area they now believed was unsafe.

She still stood where he’d left her, although she was pacing the tight confines, now guarded by four members of the Brotherhood.

“We have to leave now,” he said, grabbing her elbow.

He practically dragged Isabel through the tunnels until they reached the exit. Security be damned, the tunnels were already compromised. They raced to the carriage house, and Jason barked orders to the driver, then nearly tossed her into a carriage right before it jerked forward.

“Jason, what is happening?”

“You are in far more danger than we first thought,” he said. How was he supposed to explain all of this to her? He certainly knew what it was like to discover that you weren’t at all who you thought you were. Discovering he was a bastard had changed everything for him. “And, as it turns out, you weren’t safe down in the tunnels.” He swore. Damned if he couldn’t get things right.